


When Nobody Knew

by hunters_retreat



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pern, Crossover, December Drabble Days, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-28
Updated: 2018-02-28
Packaged: 2018-04-23 18:35:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 20,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4887478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hunters_retreat/pseuds/hunters_retreat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“I could be a dragon rider, Jared,” and the wonder of being searched had finally crept into his voice, like he was just waiting for Jared to tell him it was okay first.  “I could really do it, not just tell stories about it.  Me, a holdless nobody.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

>   I began this ages ago and I decided it was time to pull it out.  I'll post this story in installments.  Just a little something to keep me writing regularly.  I love Pern and haven't played in this world in ages.  Forgive me if I'm a little rusty :P

**Summary for the Chapter:**

>  

He couldn’t believe what he was seeing.  Well, he could.  It was all over the Hall and of course everyone was going crazy about it.  It wasn’t like they’d never come before, but this was different.

This was a search.  All of Pern knew that the weyr had 32 eggs on the sands plus a gold egg.  It wouldn’t be long now before the hatching and the candidates would be presented to the dragonets.  The lucky would impress a dragon and begin the rigorous training to become a dragonrider; the men and women who rode dragons in burst of flame to protect all of Pern.   

Jared ran up the steps of the outer walls until he found himself staring up at the most magnificent thing he’d ever seen; dragons.  Even with his harper training Jared couldn’t find words to describe it.  His fingers itched though to write the melody in his head, the pulsing beat of the bloodline, the fluttering of wings, the strong all encompassing melody of a dragon’s story.  If he could only manage to write something like that, he might actually earn the status of journeyman someday.  By the shards, if he could write a song worthy of a dragon he would be the Master Harper of all Pern.

Five dragons in all looked about the courtyard, one bronze and one brown, their riders talking softly together with the Master Harper who was motioning them inside.  Beside that were two blues and the green that Jared was staring at.  The green and blue dragonriders were talking to one another and smiling jovially at the people who had come to witness them.

“Think you’ll ever get a chance to touch one?”

Jared turned around, gasping at the very idea.  “Jensen!  You know better than that!  If one of the dragons hears you they’ll… they’ll stake you out for thread!”

Jensen laughed at his scowl.  The apprentices of the hall used to look down on Jensen when he was just a drudge.  He’d been holdless until his mother had come to the MasterHarper and begged him to take her ten year old boy in.  The holdless were the lowest of low in Pern and she wanted more for her child.  The Harper had taken Jensen in and Jared, four years younger and a drudge of the Hall by birth, had shown him the ropes along with all his favorite places to visit.

They’d become inseparable right up until the night the MasterHarper had caught Jared picking notes out of one of the string instruments he’d watched so closely as Jensen singing his mother’s lullaby out to the night sky.  The Master Harper had taken them both straight out of their life of drudgery in the kitchens and into the Hall where they’d become apprentices.

Jensen had passed through to the rank of journeyman quicker than anyone in the Harper Hall’s history.  What took others years had taken him months.  Jared had never been prouder of anything, even if it did mean he got to spend less time with Jensen.

Jared did well himself but his inability to hold a tune had held him back until they’d come to see that his strength was in his dramatic readings and in his strong fingers on a string instrument.  Given time, the Master Harper thought he’d be a composer to number among the greats.

It was far too great an aspiration for him, but he was happy.  He had Jensen who still took the time to be with him even if he beneath his status and they had Dani, the girl from the kitchens who had been most likely to join in their escapades or cover for them when they were about to get caught.

“There’s a gold egg on the sands,” Dani whispered as she came up behind them, slipping a sweetroll into Jared’s hands.  He saw the way Jensen shoved his own into his mouth and he followed his lead, making sure no one could catch them with the pilfered sweets.   “S’why they got so many blues.  They want to have a wide variety of candidates for the eggs when they hatch.  They’re visiting every Hold and Hall in their territory.”

“Can you imagine it?” Jared asked through a mouthful.

Jensen laughed, but Dani gave a small sigh that seemed bigger than the whole of her.  “Every night.”

“Girl?”  One of the riders was calling over their way and they bowed respectfully while Dani fell into a startled but graceful curtsy.  “We seem to have lost our wineskin.  Can you fetch us a new one?”

She gasped slightly to be addressed by a dragonrider herself but scurried away quickly to see to their needs.  Jared and Jensen stayed where they were, watching the dragons and riders but keeping a respectful distance.

When Dani came back she was carrying a tray with wine and some food for the riders to snack on.  One of the blue dragon’s riders tried to get Dani to talk to him but she kept her eyes down, though she did smile a time or two.   

“Should we rescue her?” Jensen asked Jared as they watched the blue riders engage her, trying to get her to smile and stop looking down at the floor.

Jared shrugged.  “Least we can do is let her be close to a dragon.  We’ll just … keep an eye out.”

Jensen didn’t seem happy about it but then he never was when someone else showed Dani any attention.  There were far too many lords and holders that thought being a drudge meant they could take as they wanted.  Dani was far too pretty for them not to keep an eye on.  It wasn’t always easy but they did their best and they’d managed to keep her out of trouble so far.  As much as she kept them out of it, anyway.

Dani’s eyes fell on Jensen twice as they talked and Jared didn’t like that anymore than Jensen liked the attention on Dani.  Dani wasn’t the only one that caught a lord or lady’s eyes in the hold, though Jensen seemed far less away of it.

The Master Harper came out at that moment, the bronze and brown riders following in his wake to stand by the others.  Dani carried her tray away and sat it on the stone wall beside Jared and stood next to her friends.

“Have you had time to find what we’re looking for?” The bronzerider asked the other riders.

“We’ve found three possible candidates.”

One of the drummers was pulled up and Jared shook his head.  They’d be weak in that section now.  He was the strongest drummer in the hall even if he was just a journeyman.

“We’ll take these two as well,” the blue rider said, pointing over at Dani and Jensen.

“What?” Jensen asked, his eyes wide with shock.

“Well no one can say the Harper Hall doesn’t send it’s best to the weyr.  You’re taking the most talented Journeyman I’ve had all these long turns,” the Master Harper said, giving Jensen a fond smile.

“Let’s hope he learned your lessons well, Master Harper.  Some say the weyr could use a finer breed these days,” the bronzerider said.

Dani and Jensen stood still for a moment but the bluerider came to them and pulled them over to the others.  Jared was too stunned to do anything more than move closer to hear what was being said.

“We leave in a candlemark.  You have that time to gather your possessions.  The weyr will provide everything else you need.”

All three of the candidates took off then to get their stuff and Jared felt bereft.  The Master Harper must have seen it because he approached Jared with a kind smile.  “Off now Jared.  Go to Jensen and make your good-byes.”

He didn’t wait for anything else, not even to give a good-bye to the dragonriders before storming down into the Hall to find Jensen at his bunk.  He didn’t have much and it was already sitting on his bed.  A few nice tunics and a pair of pants that would go with them.  A writing case that Jared and Dani had saved for a  whole turn to get him, and a simple set of throwing stones that they had collected over the turns together.

“They’ll probably just send me right back,” Jensen said, his voice slightly panicked as he looked over at Jared.

Jared let out a snort.  “You’ll impress a bronze dragon and be the Weyrleader in no time.  Everyone knows you’re an overachiever,” Jared said confidently.  “Just don’t forget to write.  I know you have a good hand so you can’t use that excuse.”

Jensen took a deep breath but before he could say anything Jared pulled out a small bag and dropped all of Jensen’s belongings into it.  “There you are.  All ready to go.”

“Jared,” Jensen’s voice was soft as he sat heavily on the bed.  “I can’t do this without you.”

Jared sat beside him and sighed.  “Always knew a day would come and you’d have to leave the nest.”

Jensen shouldered him playfully and they were both smiling and that was all Jared could want from the moment.  “You’re gonna go to the weyr and be the best rider they’ve ever seen.   You’ll do the Harper Hall proud, you and Dani.”

“I could be a dragon rider, Jared,” and the wonder of being searched had finally crept into his voice, like he was just waiting for Jared to tell him it was okay first.  “I could really do it, not just tell stories about it.  Me, a holdless nobody.”

“You, a Journeyman Harper,” Jared said softly.  “You were never a nobody Jensen, even when nobody knew it yet.”

Jensen reached a hand out and pulled him close, letting their foreheads rest together for a moment.

When they rushed back out to the courtyard the riders were waiting to take them.  Dani was already there and she gave him a tearful hug but promised to look after Jensen for him while they were gone.

The riders gave them instructions quickly about how to mount and about going between.  Jared couldn’t even imagine between.  Jensen and Dani would be at the weyr for their next meal, but it would take Jared a whole sevenday to travel the distance.  Three seconds in the cold black of between, where only a dragon’s wings kept them safe, and they would travel that great distance.  Again, Jared didn’t have the words for his awe of dragons.

When they finally mounted, Jensen looked like the little kid Jared had first met, his eyes wide and scared but a soft determination that so many people mistook.  He’d give the weyr a good shaking, Jared just knew it.

Jensen was pulled up behind the brown rider and Dani and the other journeyman were pulled up on the back of the blue dragons.  When the brown dragon rose to the sky, Jared screamed out his farewells.  The Master Harper was standing at his side, staring out into the sky.  They didn’t go back in until long after the dragons had gone between to the weyr but the MasterHarper didn’t begrudge him the time to celebrate his friends luck, and to mourn their departure.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was the last thing he said before the bronze dragon took them into the air. Jared didn’t have time to look for his friends before they were between.

“Worried they’ll drop you between?”

Jared shook his head as he pushed his shoulder back against Jake’s.  “Just hoping they’ll drop you.”

Jake smiled at Jared but before he could say anything, Alona grabbed them both by the elbow.  “Behave or they’ll leave you both here at Fort Weyr and you’ll never see the hatching grounds of Ista.”

Jared looked at Jake over her head and smiled.  Of all the candidates that were transferring from Fort Weyr to Ista Weyr, Jared was lucky he had this group to go with him.  He’d been searched from the Harper Hall two turns before and he still hadn’t impressed a dragon.  He wasn’t the oldest candidate and he hadn’t been on the sands the longest, but Jared wasn’t really known for his patience.  Maybe that was why the weyrlingmaster was ready to send him to a new weyr.

“It’s just three seconds, right?”

Jared smiled at Alona.  “Remember what they say?”

“Black, blacker, blackest.  By the time I’m done, we’ll be flying high over Ista Weyr.”

“Exactly,” Jake took up the telling.  “Only three seconds of cold and dark and we’ll get to be part of Ista’s new candidate group.”

Jared was nervous about flying between as well.  He knew it was safe, that the only time a dragon had ever been lost between was when they were seriously injured or during the occasional training accident.   The dragons and riders disappeared between and never came out again.  He’d been between once before, when he’d come from the Harper Hall, but Alona was a weyrbrat.  Her parents were both riders and somehow she’d never traveled between.

“Here they are!” Osric came running up to join them with Colin in tow.    Colin had just come to the weyr from Fort Hold before the last hatching and he was already moving.  Jared thought the kid just had itchy feet.  Osric had been at the Healer Hall and ended up at the weyr.  Jared was fond of Osric but it was really Jake and Alona he was grateful for.

Above them, the sky filled with six dragons.  Jared watched each as they appeared from between.  The Weyrleader, Weyrwoman, and Weyrlingmaster of Fort Weyr were there to greet them and the candidates were rushed forward with water and wine skins for the new arrivals.

Jared found himself offering the two skins to the bronzerider who had come with them.  “Wine please, Candidate,” the rider said with a friendly smile.  Jared handed him the skin and watched as he drank deeply.  “Your name?”

“Jared, Wingleader,” Jared replied quickly.  Jared held his head up high and remembered to use his harper-trained manners instead of fall apart like some of the candidates did.

“M’sha,” the wingleader said with a smile.  “My friends call me M’sha.”

Jared’s eyes widened but the bronzerider looked closely at him.  “You Harper trained?”

“Yes Sir, Journeyman Harper,” Jared said with pride.  “Walked the tables last year under the Fort Weyr’s harper.  Figure if I don’t impress a dragon, the least I can do is make a song or two to try to do it justice.”

M’sha smiled.  “So you would be the Jared I’ve heard so much about.  There is a weyrwoman at Ista who is looking forward to seeing you again Jared.”

“Dani?”

M’sha nodded.  “I had to listen to that last letter you sent her five times before she stopped.  It might have been that we were stuck on the hatching sands too.  Not a lot to entertain you while you’re on the sands.  Unless you’re the queen of course.  I was trying to take a nap.”

Jared realized then that M’sha was the bronzerider who’d won Dani’s mating flight.  Dani had sent him a letter about it, and about him.

“It’s been a long time.  I’m sure the weyrwoman has more important things to do than to catch up with a candidate.”

“True, but don’t be surprised if she finds a way to sneak in a visit.  Our junior weyrwoman is rather persistent when she sets her mind to something.”

Jared laughed at that but before he could say anything else, the wingleader was called forward to speak with the Weyrleaders of Fort.

“You know him?” Osric asked as he came up beside Jared.

The others congregated together again and Jared shook his head.  “I knew a girl at Harper Hall once,” Jared said with a smile.  “Three years ago she was found on search and she impressed a Queen.”

“What?  You never said.”

He smiled fondly but there was a reason he didn’t speak of it.  As much as he loved Dani and wanted to tell everyone about the sweet kitchen girl he knew that had become a Jr. Weyrwoman, it was still a bittersweet memory.  The letters Dani sent never said anything about Jensen and Jared didn’t ask.  He still didn’t know what had become of his best friend.

“Three people were searched from the Harper Hall for the Ista hatching a few turns back.  The Jr. Weyrwoman was one of them.  I wasn’t searched for Fort Weyr until a turn later.  Now she’s a Weyrwoman and I’m a candidate.  There isn’t much to say.  It will be nice to see her again though.  We write letters when we can but it’s not the same as seeing her and knowing that she’s okay.”

He tried not to think about it took much.  He hoped to catch up with Dani and to find out what had happened to Jensen but he knew that once a rider had a dragon to care for and thread to fight, riders didn’t always have time for old friends.  He tried not to get his hopes up.

“Alright candidates, time to fly,” M’sha said as he motioned Jared back to his side.  “You know how to do this, right?”

Jared nodded because while he hadn’t been on dragonback in the two years he’d been a candidate, that didn’t mean he hadn’t climbed atop his fair share to help wash one in the weyr lake.   He listened with the others as they were given their instructions, put on their protective gear, and then they each climbed in front of a rider onto one of the great dragons.   

Jared felt M’sha behind him and he let out a deep breath.  “One giant leap, a few flaps of his wings, and Donath will take us between,” the bronzerider said.

“Black, Blacker, Blackest,” Jared recited.

“Exactly.”

It was the last thing he said before the bronze dragon took them into the air.  Jared didn’t have time to look for his friends before they were between.

**

Jared didn’t realize he’d been holding his breath until they popped out of the cold of between and into the warm Ista air.

“You alright, Jared?”

Jared nodded his head, unable to speak in the moment.  His first sight of Ista Weyr was just as awe inspiring as he remembered his first vision of Fort Weyr being.  Whereas Fort Weyr had been built in a smooth oval shaped crater, Ista’s Weyr had five spikes moving high into the sky around the crater.  The large bowl in the center gave way to a corral at the end of the crater and then to a great plateau before it led off to the sea.  Dotted along the walls of the crater were the individual weyrs of each dragon and rider.  Unlike the other weyrs, Ista’s small size meant that there wasn’t enough room to house all of their dragon pairs in the weyr itself.  Instead, the outside of the crater walls was spotted with what they called forest weyrs; weyrs built into the rock walls but that overlooked the island itself.

“It’s something, isn’t it?” The rider called out to Jared.

He nodded again but looked over his shoulder to smile at the bronzerider before he turned his attention back to the flight.

He watched as the other five dragons that had come with them landed and he was grateful for the extra time sitting on the back of the great bronze beast.  He kept one hand firmly wrapped around the wherhide saddle – though he knew the rider wouldn’t let him fall – but with the other he gently patted the dragon’s hide.

He doubted the dragon could feel it through his thick skin but Jared felt it was appropriate to offer thanks in some way.  He was always surprised by the warmth of a dragon’s scales.  As a candidate they often had to help with the caring of dragons.  Sometimes they worked with the dragon healers and sometimes they simply helped riders who had been injured in threadfall.  The dragon healers of Fort had asked for him often due to his calming voice and the way he could tell stories for long periods of time.  He’d talked many a rider and dragon to sleep while they endured treatment or waited for the fellis to kick in and help them sleep through the pain.

He felt the dragon’s angle change and then they were diving down to land in the great bowl of Ista Weyr.  He refused to close his eyes or cry out when the dragon dove, but the great bronze snapped his wings out as they descended just in time to land cleanly.

“Show off,” the rider said with a firm pat to the dragon’s hide behind him.  “Sorry about that.  Donath likes to surprise people and he believed you were up for the challenge.”

Jared laughed.  “I appreciate the confidence, and the safe landing,” Jared said as he and M’sha dismounted.  He turned to the great bronze and bowed deeply.

“Thank you, Donath, for the safe journey.  It is greatly appreciated and it was indeed a great, if short, adventure.”

M’sha clapped him on the shoulder and smiled.  “We like you, Candidate.  Good luck on the sands.”

M’sha left with the other riders and Jared was left standing in the bowl with the other four candidates.  None of them knew what to do but they clumped together as Jared pointed towards what he hoped was the weyr’s entrance.

“It’s not as big as Fort Weyr, is it?” Colin asked.

Jared sighed as he looked over at Colin.  Colin had been a Lord Holder’s youngest son and while he’d always been fun to have around, he wasn’t always the best at remembering old affiliations had nothing to do with weyr politics.  They were Ista candidates now and there was no need to compare the weyr with Fort.

“She might be smaller in size, but she still packs a punch when it counts,” a voice rang out behind them.

Jared turned around and looked at the older man that approached them.  He noticed the knots on the rider’s shoulder that denoted his rank immediately.  The Weyrlingmaster of Ista Weyr looked grumpy with a serious expression on his face, but there were laugh lines around his eyes and mouth.  He watched them for a moment but didn’t make a further comment about what Colin had just said.  Jared decided he might be disciplined, but not mean.

Reporting from Fort Weyr, Weyrlingmaster,” Jared said as the rider just stared at them.  The man looked at Jared for a moment before he took them all in and nodded to each as he held their eyes.

“You all know we have a clutch on the sands.  Fantith laid thirty two eggs, including a gold.  We sent to each of the other weyrs to see if they had candidates they wanted to send along.  Your former Weyrlingmaster assured me that you five were worth keeping around.  See that you live up to his belief in you.”

Jared nodded and didn’t need to look to know his friends had done the same.  None of them wished to dishonor the weyr they’d come from or make a bad impression with their new weyr.

“Normally I’d have you settle in and get to know the place, but Ista is a bit of a maze and we’ve all just accepted that everyone gets lost in the beginning.  When you do get turned around, just ask for help.  We’re all used to it around here.  The other candidates are at the hatching grounds right now, so we’re going to head straight there.  When we’re done we’ll get your things settled into the candidate’s quarters.”

The man turned and began to walk back out across the bowl of the weyr.  He turned to walk backwards as he led them back out of the weyr.  “I’m Weyrlingmaster J’mes.  I’ll be in charge of you until you impress, or until you decided to pack it up and find something else.  You lot don’t look like quitters to me, so it looks like we’ll be getting to know one another real well.”

“The current clutch was laid by Fantith.  This was her first mating flight and Junior Weyrwoman Danneel doesn’t leave the hatching grounds at all.  You’ll normally find Donath or Strith’s riders at her side.  Danneel is an excellent weyrwoman but she’s got a wildfire temper so I suggest you put your best foot forward.  After we’re done, we’ll get you settled.  Should be about time for lunch then and you can meet the other candidates.”

Jared wasn’t sure which he was more excited about; seeing the eggs or getting his first glimpse at Dani in three years.  He wanted the chance to talk to her, catch up, and see how weyr life had been for her.  Not that Jared expected he’d get a chance to talk to her; she was a weyrwoman now and he was a candidate with a never ending regiment of training and work.  It was a nice thought though and even if he couldn’t talk to her, he could see with his own eyes that she was doing well.

The hatching grounds of Ista were much the same as those of Fort Weyr.  The weyr opened into a large cavern where the Queen could sit and watch her eggs.  Warm sand covered the floor of the grounds and across the wall were seats where the weyrfolk and invited guests would come at the time of the hatching to witness the impression of new dragons and their riders.  The cavern had ledges higher up for other dragons to watch.

Among the thirty two eggs currently on the sand, Jared could see other candidates as they moved around the eggs.  They touched softly, reverently, as they walked along.  Jared looked at Alona and gave her an encouraging smile before they both stepped onto the sands together.

Jared moved away from the others and began to make his way around to all the eggs.  He spoke softly as he moved, hands softly caressing each shell before he’d move to another.  There would be other days to come back and visit, but Jared hoped to make a good impression the first time.

On more than the eggs.

Only girls were presented to the gold egg but all the boys were expected to pay their respects to the Queen.  At the back of the cavern, Queen Fantith sat with her rider.  Jared stopped before her and stared at the beautiful woman before him. Junior Weyrwoman Danneel was stunning, but she would always be Jared’s Dani, the kitchen girl who helped him sneak sweets to Jensen and who helped him keep on the good side of the Harper Hall’s kitchen staff.  She smiled as she looked down at him and Jared couldn’t help but return it.

“Weyrwoman, the humblest of respect to you and your beautiful Queen,” he said as he bowed low.

The cavern rung suddenly with the bellow of the queen and an answering bellow began outside the caverns.  Jared looked up startled as the Queen bellowed a second time.  Weyrlingmaster  J’mes gathered them all up to lead them away, but the Queen bellowed a third time.

Jared was being led off the sands, but a dragonrider grabbed him by the arm.  “Excuse me, J’mes, but the Queen wants this one still.”

“What the ever loving name of Faranth for?” the Weyrlingmaster asked.

“No clue, but Strith is insistent as well.”

Jared stared at the rider who had yet to look at him but when the Weyrlingmaster nodded, Jared was drug back onto the sands even though everyone else had been sent away.  He was being led through the sands and towards the shelf where the Junior Weyrwoman stood watching.  Jared had enough though and he pulled his arm out of the rider’s grasp.

“Jensen?”  It only took a second to see the knots on his jacket to realize exactly who he was.  “Wingleader J’sen?”

“Hey Jared,” Jensen… J’sen … said with a small smile.  “Funny meeting you here.”

“Funny meeting … ” Jared fumed.  It was the worst possible time for him to lose his temper but he forgot about the hatching and the Queen and the dragons and everything.  “I waited for three years and not one letter?  Not a single note to let me know you were okay?  That you impressed a dragon?  That you were a wingleader already?”

J’sen sighed.  “You said I’d do it quick.  You were right.  Strith found me on the sands that first hatching and I managed to make wingleader earlier this turn.”

“Jared,” he looked up at Dani and her smile was indulgent.  “While I appreciate your need to berate J’sen for his terrible behavior, Fantith sent everyone away for some reason and she wants you on the sands.  Please stop manhandling one of our wingleaders and get on the sands.”

J’sen stepped back and Jared looked up at the Queen.

“I am so sorry.  I beg your pardon,” he said as he walked away from J’sen and onto the hatching sands.  As much as he wanted to talk to J’sen, he wasn’t about to risk angering the Queen or risking his chances on the sands.  No one knew why a dragon chose the rider they did.  He had no idea why the gold dragon wanted him down there now either, so he moved around the eggs again and touched each one as he’d been doing before.  He noticed the way Dani and J’sen watched him and whispered to one another but he tried not to let that take his focus from the task at hand.

“You missed one,” Danneel said softly when Jared made his way back to her and bowed again to Fantith.

“Dani,” J’sen called her name but Danneel shook her head to forestall him.

“You can’t mean … I’m not supposed to touch the gold egg,” Jared said.

“Fantith insists that you be allowed to attend all her daughters as well as her sons.”

It wasn’t allowed, but then again neither was disobeying a Weyrwoman.  He let out a deep breath as he stepped forward and found the egg.  It was larger than the others and Jared could have sworn it was warmer too.  He wasn’t sure what to do so he approached it the same way he had the others.

He let his hand skim lightly over the egg.  “Hello little dragon,” he said softly.  “My name is Jared.  I am a journeyman harper, at least I was and probably will be again soon.  Not that I wouldn’t want to be a dragonrider but it’s been two years and I’m beginning to think my dragon isn’t on the sands.  I’m not the type to give up hope, but I must say that I wouldn’t mind being a weyr harper if being a candidate didn’t work out.”

He kept up a steady stream of conversation with the egg until Danneel relented and told him the Queen was satisfied.  
Danneel disappeared and Jared was left with J’sen.

“Jared?”

“Yes?”

“That was … unusual.  I’ve never seen Fantith that upset.”

“And the other dragon that bellowed with her?  Was that her mate?”

J’sen shook his head.  “No, that was Strith, my bronze.  They agreed that you should be here.”

“What’s going on?” Jared asked.

“I have no idea.  I think maybe they wanted you to have a chance to spend time with us.  Dani and I.”

“You never wrote, J’sen.”  He hated that he’d lost control of his voice, how small he sounded, but Jensen had been his best friend, his everything.  He disappeared as if Jared had never meant anything and it still hurt.

J’sen looked down at his hands and shook his head.  “How could I?  The day I impressed Strith was the best and worst day of my life.  I had just gained the most amazing thing, but in that moment, the person I wanted to tell the most?  I’d just guaranteed that I’d never see him again.  I didn’t know how to tell you all the things I was thinking and it was killing me.  I wrote so many letters and none of them rang true.  I just couldn’t do it.  I just waited and hoped and every time someone went on search to the Harper Hall I hoped you’d come back with them.”

“So you were a coward?”

“Basically, yes,” J’sen admitted.

“And now?”

J’sen pulled him close before Jared could ask him anything else.  “I missed you Jared.  By the first egg, it’s good to see you again.”

Jared laughed to see J’sen smile at him and suddenly the world was okay again.   He was sure it would come up between them, but Jared knew they’d find a way to deal with it.

“Not that I don’t appreciate a little time to catch up, but I’m pretty sure J’mes will have my hide if I don’t catch up with the candidates.”  
J’sen smiled.  “I’ll lead you to them.  Strith said they’re just getting to the dining hall. I’ll make sure you get fed before I drop you off.  Dani would have my hide if I let you go hungry.  You still have a dragon’s 2 stomachs?” J’sen asked.

Jared patted his stomach and smiled.  “I can’t help it J’sen.  I’m a growing boy.”

They laughed together as J’sen began to show Jared around and it felt almost like old times.


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The humming of the dragons was unmistakable

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to ferrous_wheeler and drgaellon on LJ for the beta on this chapter!

  

“J’sen, you have to stop this.”

Jared stopped before he rounded the corner when he heard the concern in the Weyrlingmaster’s voice. He’d been on his way to see J’sen in his weyr after he’d spent his afternoon – the first free one he’d had in the four sevendays he’d been a Candidate at Ista Weyr – bathing J’sen’s bronze in the Weyr Lake. He wasn’t the only Candidate that had been down there admiring the dragons. Like Jared, most of the candidates would take any excuse to get close to them. Alona and Jake had helped him scrub the behemoth of a bronze dragon while the Wingleaders were in a meeting.

Jared had cleaned and planned to steal a few minutes with J’sen for a few minutes before dinner but there was something in the Weyrlingmaster’s words that made it impossible for him to intrude. As curious as Jared was, it made it impossible for him to back away as well.

“There is nothing inappropriate going on, if that’s what you’re worried about, J’mes,” Jensen said quickly.

“I do not doubt your integrity, or your intentions, boy.”

There was a kindness in J’mes voice as he spoke to J’sen, and Jared realized that there was a stronger bond between the two than just Weyrlingmaster and former student.

“Then what?”

“I was there, J’sen, when you Impressed. I was there when you nearly lost it all, or did you forget that? You think I don’t know who you were talking about? You might not have put a name to it, but I’m not blind and I’ve always looked out for you.”

“I know, and I appreciate it, J’mes, but I’m fine.”

“You know what happened when you Impressed. Your emotional reaction almost killed Strith. Would you do that to him?”

“What? No! It wasn’t his fault. I don’t… I don’t want him to know. He can’t. He’s different from me, J’mes. He’s stronger. He would never… Please, what do I need to do?”

J’mes sighed heavily. When he spoke, there was a regret that Jared had never heard in his voice. “I don’t know, J’sen. But the way the Queen treats him, the way you and Dani do, I’m not the only one to notice. I’m not the only one concerned.”

Jared couldn’t move. He didn’t understand he what just heard but he knew it had something to do with him. As much as he wanted to run in and check on J’sen, he couldn’t interrupt the moment. There were no more words spoken and Jared could envision the scene, J’sen sitting at the table in his weyr with his head bowed, and the Weyrlingmaster sitting close by in silent support.

When the dinner bell began to chime, Jared was relieved for the chance to disturb the broody silence. He stomped heavily as he rounded the rest of the steps to J’sen’s weyr and stopped abruptly when he entered. J’mes and J’sen were right where he’d pictured them and Jared forced a smile on his lips.

“Forgive my intrusion, Weyrlingmaster,” he said with a slight bow of his head. “I didn’t know you were here. I was trying to beat the dinner bell to see if you were well, Wingleader, but I guess I was late.”

J’mes gave J’sen a long look before he turned his eyes to Jared. “Did you spend your time well this afternoon, Candidate?”

“I did. Strith was at the Weyr lake with some of the other bronzes while their riders were in meetings. Some of the candidates went down to help bathe them.”

“I thank you,” J’sen said with a small smile. There was a far off look in his eyes that Jared had come to know meant he was talking to his bronze dragon. “As does Strith. He said that you and the other two did a fine job. And the attention you and your friends gave his wings while you oiled him was very welcomed.”

Jared bowed his head slightly because even if he and J’sen were very informal with one another, the idea that Strith thought well of him was something else entirely. “Please, tell him it was our honor to be of some service.”

“Alona and Jake?” The Weyrlingmaster asked Jared.

Jared nodded. “We wanted to have a closer look at the dragons so we went to the lake together. When Strith used his wings to soak us, we figured it meant he was in need of help.”

“Strith soaked you?” J’mes asked as he looked back at J’sen.

“Yes, then the other bronze dragons did much the same to the other Candidates that were already there.”

“It sounds like they were well cared for then, while we were in our meeting,” the Weyrlingmaster said. He stood and looked at J’sen. “We’ll talk later. I believe the Weyrwoman wanted a word with you after dinner in regards to our earlier discussion. I wanted to forewarn you.”

J’sen took a deep breath, but his eyes were downcast. “Thank you. You’ve been a good friend, J’mes,” the bronzerider said softly. “I appreciate it, especially now.”

The Weyrlingmaster gave Jared a small smile as he passed him on his way out of J’sen’s weyr. The man was kind, but strict with his charges, and Jared was thrown by the sadness he caught in the other man’s eyes. His gut twisted with foreboding but he had no idea what the two had been talking about. How could J’sen have almost lost Strith? And what did that have to do with him? He didn’t understand, but he also knew he couldn’t ask J’sen. Maybe Dani would be willing to answer his questions - if he could get her alone. M’sha always seemed to turn up when they finally had some time to spend together. He never asked Jared to leave, but there were some things he couldn’t speak of in front of others.

“I’m sorry,” Jared said as he took a step closer to J’sen. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

J’sen looked at Jared and smiled. “You didn’t. J’mes is a good man outside of his outstanding record as a Weyrlingmaster; I’m lucky to count him as a friend. He was just coming to check on me.”

“Are you well?”

“I am,” J’sen said, but he frowned. “I’m the youngest Wingleader the Weyr has seen though. We have lost too many good men this turn. While I would have done my best to gain my position through years of hard work and dedication, I have achieved it young because of that loss. J’mes likes to make sure I am not worked beyond my ability.”

“He doesn’t know you like I do then,” Jared said softly. No matter what else he’d heard, he had absolute faith in his friend. “There is nothing you can’t do when you set your mind to it.”

J’sen shook his head. “Maybe. What do you say we skip the dining hall tonight? I can have something sent up for us.”

They didn’t do it often, usually only after the Weyr had gone into a bad Threadfall. J’sen liked to keep to himself then, and only Jared seemed to be welcome company. Jared reveled in the fact, even if it saddened him to see his friend isolate himself. He knew J’sen though, and the silence was so the Wingleader could relive the battle, to evaluate his wing, and see what he could have done differently. On those nights, Jared was just there to keep him company, his own mind swimming with the wounds he’d seen or the losses they’d faced.

After the last Threadfall, Jared had stayed with J’sen on the weyr ledge overlooking the forest until sunrise. He didn’t know what J’sen had relived, but Jared had watched a rider die over and over in his head. Jared had been in the infirmary calming the rider’s brown dragon while the rider was treated for his wounds. The rider had succumbed to his injuries though, and Jared had watched as the brown had lumbered away from the weyr, screaming into the sky before he took flight. Clumsy as he was with his own Thread scars, the brown gained air and went _between_ , never to return.

Jared couldn’t imagine a bond so strong that death was the better alternative to life without a bondmate. When he looked at J’sen though, he sometimes thought maybe he could.

 

**

<<2 sevendays later>>

The closer the Hatching got, the harder J’mes pushed the Candidates. Their few free days were now nonexistent and Jared was exhausted. Thread wasn’t scheduled to fall over Ista territory for another sevenday, but J’mes had half of them scouring flamethrowers for the Queen’s wing, and the other half off with the hall Healers to make the numbweed salve that was so necessary after Threadfall.

As much as Jared hated the stench of numbweed, he’d almost rather be there than be in the middle of the flamethrowers with lessons on how to take them apart and clean them. His mind wandered about today and he kept stabbing himself as he tried to scrape away the grime and muck from the older flamethrowers that didn’t see much use - they were less reliable but the Weyr wasn’t about to leave them to waste. At some point, the parts would be used for replacements but they still worked well enough, and in an emergency an old flamethrower was better than nothing.

“Well done, Candidates,” Junior Weyrwoman Danneel said as she walked around the circle of workers in the Weyr bowl. Jared was surprised to see her there while the eggs were so close to Hatching, but he figured even the Weyrwoman needed to get some air once in a while. The Hatching Grounds were always warm, and even though Jared cherished the time they got to visit the eggs on the sands, he’d have been bored to tears if he was stuck to watch a clutch the way the Weyrwomen were.

Danneel surprised them all when she took an old flamethrower and sat next to Jared. “Just because you ride a dragon doesn’t mean you get out of chores,” she said to the group as she began to strip the parts and clean it. “Taking care of your dragon takes a great deal of time, but there is always work to be done at the Weyr when that is done.”

“And who guards Fantith and her eggs while you’re doing chores?” Jared asked. The others looked askance at him but Jared had always been curious and Danneel full well knew it. If she’d wanted to keep a distance from the Candidates and not be seen as the woman she was, she wouldn’t have sat next to Jared.

“M’sha and his bronze are in the Hatching cavern. There are only so many days I can spend going through musty old records before I need a break and a little sun. I suppose I should be grateful to you, Jared. If you hadn’t taught me to read while I was at the Harper Hall, I wouldn’t even have that respite in the Hatching cavern. I love Fantith, but I am not a dragon that can stay inside stone walls and stare forever at a clutch of eggs.”

Jared laughed. Danneel was older than he was but as a kitchen drudge she hadn’t been given much education. She knew the teaching songs as well as anyone, but that was it. Her days were spent baking and cleaning and taking orders from the Harper Hall’s Headwoman. When they were still at the Crafthall, Jared had spent time in the evenings teaching her to read. He’d thought it remarkable how fast she’d picked up on the language, and over the turns her handwriting had become so clear and crisp that he’d thought to mention her to the scribes at the hall. She’d been searched before he did.

“Weyrwoman Danneel,” J’mes gave a small bow to her and she acknowledged him with a smile and a tilt of her head. “To all of you who think your past lives make you too good for cleaning and drudgery, just remember this:” he said as he pointed to Danneel, “the Weyr works because we all do our part, and when someone can’t do theirs, we pick up the slack.”

Danneel nodded appreciatively at the Weyrlingmaster’s words and Jared smiled at her. Alona and Jake sat close by Jared. He wasn’t surprised when they began to engage in small talk with the Weyrwoman. Jared had told them about her, about the girl he’d known, and though there was some stammering, they got over their fear of speaking to the Junior Weyrwoman. The afternoon was much brighter for her help and her laughter. She spoke of her experiences in the Weyr and brought J’mes into the conversation as well. More than once they had laughed at anecdotes they told about previous weyrlings and Candidates. Jared couldn’t remember a more enjoyable afternoon of chores.

 

**

<<2 days later>>

“What is that?” Colin asked as a humming noise surrounded them in the Candidate’s quarters.

Although he asked, Colin knew what it was. So did Jared and all the other Candidates who had witnessed a Hatching before. It might be their first Hatching at Ista but Jared had spent two turns at Fort Weyr as he waited to Impress. The humming of the dragons was unmistakable

“It’s time,” Jared said as he looked over at Alona.

“Where are our robes?” Osric asked as he sat up in bed.

“Rise and shine, ladies and gentlemen,” the Weyrlingmaster called out as he entered the room. One of the women from the lower caverns came in with a stack of white robes and began to hand them out to the Candidates.

Behind them was T’moh, the Weyrlingmaster Second - his brown, Halth, was almost as big as a bronze, and Jared had spent more than a little time idolizing the rider. He was kind and patient and he usually came by the Candidate’s barracks just before lights out to see if there was anything about their day’s learning that the Candidates had questions about. Sometimes he just came to check on them, but he’d been known to spend hours talking about their day’s lessons when it was needed.

There was chaos as the Candidates tried to get ready, but Jared knew that it would be even worse out in the Weyr Caverns - riders would be scrambling to pick up the people who had been invited to attend the Hatching and the Lower Cavern workers would be cooking up a storm to prepare a feast for the Weyr to celebrate their numbers. It was a bigger event than usual since there was a gold egg on the sands.

Jared wanted to find J’sen and talk to him one more time, try to get some advice on what to do. Jared had been on the sands for two turns but J’sen had only been on the sands the one time. Surely he had some idea why he had been chosen so quickly. It was too late now though as Jared took his Candidate robe and pulled it over his head.

As they all finished, J’mes led them away from the barracks to the Hatching Grounds. The humming that had woken them had grown steadily as the dragons at the upper reaches of the cavern continued their song. Jared wondered if it was a welcome to the new dragonets or if there was something more to it. He thought that, try as hard as he might, he’d never be able to pen a song that would give credit to the magnificence of the moment.

J’mes stopped them outside the grounds and Jared took advantage of his height to peer into the other room. At ground level, the eggs were nestled safely in the sands, but beyond that were the stands full of people. Riders that weren’t needed to ferry visitors into the Weyr had already begun to take seats around the Hatching Sands. At the far edge was the ledge where Queen Fantith watched over her eggs. Beside her was her rider, along with the bronze who had fathered the clutch and his rider, M’sha.

The Weyrlingmaster called them together and Jared pulled his eyes away from the Hatching Grounds.

“You all know what to do,” J’mes said. “You know what to do if you are lucky enough to Impress today. Keep your wits about you out there and no one will get hurt. Remember, these dragonets will focus on their rider and will push everyone else out of the way. If you stand between them, they will use force. You are here to find your dragon, not stand between someone else and theirs.”

It was a scary speech, considering what they were about to face, but Danneel had told Jared some of the horror stories about a past Hatching where a Lord Holder’s son thought to Impress a bronze that had clearly chosen someone else. They said the warning to keep it from happening again. Jared just felt grateful that most of the Candidates he’d trained with were fairly level-headed.

He felt a hand slip into his and he smiled at Alona. Katie, a Candidate from Ista Weyr, stood right beside her. Alona and Katie had become close friends and Jared was fond of her as well. Jake crowded next to them with Colin and Osric close by. Jared hoped they’d all find their dragons today, but he knew it was too much to hope. They all deserved it, though. They were good people; the sort of people you trusted when times were hard. If Jared could choose the people he went into Thread with, it would be those five.

“Good luck, Candidates,” T’moh said as J’mes stepped out of the entranceway.

They hurried onto the sands and began to make a loose circle around the eggs. The girls formed a circle around the gold egg. It wasn’t the only dragon they might Impress but the Weyr wanted to give the little Queen a wide variety to choose from.

Jared hopped from foot to foot on the hot sands and wondered once again why they weren’t allowed shoes. No one could answer that one for him. He could understand keeping with tradition but holding to tradition just for tradition’s sake seemed silly.  

The humming seemed to reach a peak as the eggs around them began to move. They shifted from side to side as the dragonets inside began to try to break free from their shells. A few minutes passed as they looked from egg to egg before a large crack appeared in one of the larger ones in the center. The crack formed a circle all around the top of the egg before a dragon head burst through the top. As its wings stretched the shell cracked down the center in two, and a bronze dragon stepped free from the shards.

A cheer went up from the audience. It was good luck to have a bronze hatch first, and Jared smiled up into the stands where Danneel stood proudly with M’sha at her side. Another egg cracked and Jared’s eyes came back to the Hatching sands.

The bronze hobbled its way across the over-warm, gritty ground, quickly. It tripped over its wingtips and almost fell before Osric righted him. The dragon stared at Osric and then Osric let out a laugh. “His name is Cortanth,” he said in awe.

A green broke through next and soon the eggs were hatching too fast for Jared to see them all. Greens and blues, browns and bronzes cracked through their shells and found their waiting riders.

Jared looked up at the girls to see Katie get head butted in the knee by a little green. She fell onto her knees in the sand and turned in time to find the little green burrow its way into her arms.

Colin led a brown off the sands to where the meat that had been prepared waited for them to feed the hungry dragonets. A brown came stumbling over towards Jared, but when Jake took a step forward, Jared could see that the other boy had claim on the dragon.

He was so happy for his friends, but Jared couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret that he wasn’t going to find a dragon this time. There were a few eggs left on the sands, so Jared didn’t give up hope yet, but he couldn’t help but worry.

In the back of the Hatching sands, the gold egg began to rock, as if she had waited until she could have all the attention. The gold egg didn’t show any signs of cracks but suddenly exploded in a shower of shards. He saw one of the girls clutch her arm and hoped she hadn’t been hurt by the shell. They’d been warned not to step on the sharp edged remains as they made their way barefoot off the sands.

The gold dragonet raised her head high. She seemed to possess a calm that had been missing in the other dragons as they stumbled to find their riders. She looked over the girls around her and took a step forward. The girls closest to the queen took a step back. Apparently J’mes’ story had been enough to cause them concern. The gold continued to walk until she was past the circle of female Candidates. Jared was so entranced by the perfect little queen that he almost missed the blue dragon that charged into Alona. Alona gave a cry of joy at the connection and Jared couldn’t help but give an encouraging whoop for his friend.

The gold dragon stared at the audience around her but his cry brought her eyes to him. He couldn’t help but wonder who would get to Impress the beauty. There was an almost red tint to the gold of her scales around her wingtips and along her wingsail. She was perfectly proportioned and she already had a regal bearing. She would be a strong queen, a good leader, Jared thought as he watched her.

_Yes, we shall be._

“What?”

_We shall be a strong pair, you and I._

Jared looked around like the voice in his head could possibly be directed at someone else. There was amusement in the back of his head and for the first time he felt the press of another consciousness in his mind.

“Me?” he asked in shock. It wasn’t possible. In all the history of the Weyr’s no man had ever Impressed a Queen.

_Of course you. I am Aloqueth and you are mine._

_You’re supposed to pick a girl!_

_Why?_

Jared had no answer for that.

_I see what you mean about the sands. They should let you wear shoes. Perhaps we should leave the sands and you can find me something to eat._

Jared stumbled forward then, horrified that he’d forgotten she would need food. He reached a hand out and touched Aloqueth’s eye-ridge. Her eyes began to whirl in blues and greens. “Alright, it’s just over this way,” Jared said as he led Aloqueth to the other newly Impressed weyrlings.

Jared didn’t look around to see anyone’s reaction to his Impression. He was too caught in her presence to notice.

When he left the sands, J’mes was there with a raised brow and a shake of his head. “I’m going to tell them to stop searching Harper Hall. They always send us trouble.”

Jared opened his mouth to speak but J’mes smiled at him then gave a nod to his dragon. _His_ dragon. “What is her name?”

“Aloqueth.”

“She is a beauty, Jared. Welcome, Aloqueth.”

 _I like him,_ Aloqueth said as they were led to a seat and someone handed Jared a bucket of meat.

_Good thing. We’ll be spending a lot of time with the Weyrlingmaster for the next turn and a half._

_Why?_ She asked as she snatched some wherry meat from his hands.

 _Manners!_ Jared said and she looked up sheepishly at him. _He’ll be training us. He’ll teach me how to take care of you._

_I definitely like him._

Jared laughed as he continued to feed her chunks of meat until her belly was full. He scratched her eye ridge and remembered about the oiling before she could complain.   He got a pot of oil and a paddle from T’moh and began to slather the oil over her freshly dried scales.

She was nearly asleep when Jared finished and he looked up to find the Weyrleaders standing over him.

“Weyrleaders,” he started to stand up but Aloqueth pushed him back down with her snout. She preferred to lie on his lap than on the cold floor.

“Jared, it seems like you are going to be troubling us a while longer,” J’frey, rider of bronze Esith said. His words were kind, though, and there was a light in his eyes that seemed to imply the Weyrleader actually liked troublemakers. Not that Jared tried to be one.

Samantha, Sr. Weyrwoman, stooped down to Jared’s level and smiled. “What’s her name?”

“Aloqueth,” he said softly as he looked down at her. “I’m sorry, she’s rather sleepy or I’d give you a proper introduction.”

 _You should wake up to meet them_ , Jared admonished.

_I can meet them tomorrow. Are we going to sleep on the cold floor?_

Jared let out a soft laugh then tried to straighten his expression. “I’m so sorry. She’s just…”

“We all understand, Jared,” Danneel said as she came over and sat next to him on the ground. “We all went through this too.”

“Is it always so… encompassing?’

The others laughed and Jared waited. “Yes,” Danneel said. “You’ll get used to it though; I promise.”

The Weyrleaders smiled again at him and J’frey gave him a small nod. “We will speak with you tomorrow, Jared. I would say welcome to our newest Weyrwoman, but we are obviously going to have to find a more suitable title for you. For now, I will simply say, welcome to our newest goldrider. If you have any needs, let us know.”

The Weyrleadership walked past him then and began to welcome the other new riders, but Danneel stayed.

“She wants to know if we’re sleeping on the floor.”

Danneel smiled fondly. “I’m sure J’mes has other arrangements made for you.”

“I do indeed,” J’mes said as he came up beside them, “which you already know from lessons, I’m sure.”

 _Come on,_ Jared said to Aloqueth. _Time to find our bed._

 _If we must,_ she said sleepily. Jared smiled, but as he tried to stand she let him up. He followed J’mes to the Weyrling barracks and stumbled into the bed beside his beautiful gold. It was a fresh morning, but Jared was too tired to try to fight the need to sleep with his dragon.

When he closed his eyes, his only thought was how proud Danneel and J’sen would be of him, and how he was going to do right by his dragon


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One of these days, everyone would stop watching him so closely. One of these days, they’ll all stop waiting for him to fail.

After their nap, Jared and the other new weyrlings spent time with their mates.  Weyrlingmaster J’mes and his second, T’moh made the rounds to talk to each of them and see that their dragons had been properly fed and well oiled.  The weyr didn’t suffer fools, J’mes had taught them quickly enough in candidate training, and it suffered foolish riders even less. 

With their dragons well stuffed from a second meal, the newest weyrlings left their dragons sleeping to go out to join the feast that had begun in their honor.  There were lords from all over the Northern Continent, not just those beholden to Ista Weyr.  Jared recognized a few from his time in the Harper Hall, but he recognized the shoulder knots of five of the main Holds and a half dozen smaller ones. 

At the head table, Jared saw the Weyrleaders from Fort, High Reaches, and Telgar had come to join in their festivities.   

“Someday, you’ll be sitting at that table,” Alona said as she came to sit beside him at the weyrling tables.  Jared looked down at his plate, grateful for her friendship.  He’d been sitting alone, no one sure of what to make of him yet. 

“I can’t get my head around that thought,” he admitted.

“Neither can we,” J’ke said as he sat across from Alona.  “We get to say we knew him when he was a lowly candidate….”

Jared let out a laugh at that and his tension dissipated.  He had no idea what was in store for him, but he knew not everyone would embrace him as a gold rider.  He had a few friends, at least.

“I can’t believe we all impressed at the same time,” Jared confided.  “Where are O’sric and C’lin?”

“They’re both still staring at their dragons, all goo-goo eyed,” Katie said as she approached the table.  “Can I join you, um, what should I call you?”

“Jared?” he asked. 

She let out a deep breath when he nodded and she took a seat next to J’ke.  “Those two are so besotted with their dragons.  I think J’mes is going to have to force them out of the weyrling barracks to go eat.”

“It’s kinda crazy, isn’t it?” he asked.  He could feel Aloqueth in the back of his head, her gentle slumber soothing his nerves.  “I’ve listened to all the stories, told more than a few myself, but nothing seems to do it justice, does it?”

Katie smiled at him and J’ke’s eyes took a faraway look that Jared thought might mean he was speaking with his dragon.     Alona bumped his shoulder and nodded.  “Guess you’ll have to try to write your own songs about it now.”

“Right, because I’m sure J’mes and T’moh will leave us plenty of spare time for that.”

They ate their meal quickly after that as the excitement and newness wore off to the practicality of empty bellies.  Riders stopped by to congratulate them and pass on bits of wisdom to them, or just to make themselves known.  C’lin made it to the table while they were still eating but O’sric was actually led out by T’moh.  The Weyrlingmaster 2nd led him firmly to the table and set food in front of him, but there was a fond smile on his face as he did so. 

Harpers filled the hall with music and Jared listened as Master Richard led them through song after song about the weyrs and the majesty of their dragons.  Master Richard was an adequate singer, but he was an amazing story teller and Jared had found himself captivated by the harper on more than one occasion.  He was truly gifted. 

“Jared, I’m afraid I need to borrow you for a moment,” Danneel broke him from his enjoyment of the harper with her words.

“Weyrwoman,” he said as he looked up at her.  She smiled, but he could see that this wasn’t a personal visit.  Her warmth was there, but her smile was forced.  “Of course.”

She stepped back and he realized she wanted him to follow.  As they stepped away from the table, she spoke quietly.  “Some of the other weyr leaders wanted to meet you.  Your Impression has left them … well … shocked is the best word for it I suppose.”

Jared had been too wrapped up in his own experience with Aloqueth but at her words he realized a hush had fallen on the people around them.  The harpers tried their best to keep the music going, but all eyes in the cavern had fallen on Jared as he walked up to the Weyrleader’s table.

“Just be yourself, Jared.  No one who knows you could possibly hate you,” She encouraged him with a small smile. 

It was real and Jared couldn’t help but smile back at her.  “Right.  Just be me.”

 _Why wouldn’t you be?_ Aloqueth asked sleepily.  She wasn’t truly awake.  Jared wondered if she’d felt his concern and woke or if it was just a coincidence but it made him feel better to hear her voice in his head.

 _I’m going to meet the Weyrleaders of three other weyrs.  It’s a bit intimidating,_ he informed her.

She huffed away his concern and he felt her drift back to sleep again.  He laughed in spite of himself.

“Aloqueth?” Danneel asked.

He nodded, with a smile.  “She was unimpressed with my worries about the weyrleaders.”

Danneel’s smile grew.  “The good thing about dragons is they always remind you of what’s important.”

They were at the head table then and Danneel had brought him to stand directly in front of J’frey and Samantha.  He’d spoke briefly with them after his Impression but it was different to see them in this setting.  They’d always seemed kind to him, though they could be stern when needed. 

“Weyrleaders,” he said with a bow of his head.

J’frey and Samantha both smiled at him and he relaxed a little more.   “Jared, how fares Aloqueth?” J’frey asked.

“She’s very full and happily asleep at the moment,” Jared said, unable to respond without a smile when he was talking about his dragon.

“She is a beauty, Jared,” Samantha said, as if they were old friends.  “Trust J’mes and T’moh to teach you the right way to care for her and I think she’ll be something special.”

“She would have to be, wouldn’t she?” One of the other weyrleaders said from down the table.  “She has already proven to be unorthodox.  A male rider when she had the choice of so many prime females?”

“T’mothy, do you doubt the dragon’s choice?” the Weyrwoman to his right asked. 

“Never, my dear Gen, but it is something new and I can’t help but wonder what it portents.”

“Jared, may I introduce you to Weyrleader T’mothy and Weyrwoman Genevieve of Fort Weyr,” Danneel said.

“Not so formal, Danneel.  Jared was a candidate with us for two turns,” T’mothy said as he directed a grisly smile at Jared.  The man appeared a beast, with a glower that would make most turn and run in the other direction, but underneath that was a man with a kind heart and a truly gentle spirit.

“Nothing against your Impression, I am happy to have been here to witness it,” he continued, “but I’ll be honest and tell you I had hoped to see you reach your Mastery and return to Fort Weyr as a harper.”

“What would you do with Master Rob, then?” Jared asked. 

“I could probably send him out to sing to the dragons.  They seem as enthralled with him as he is with them,” T’mothy answered. 

Jared laughed and it felt good.  He’d almost forgotten how friendly T’mothy had been with him at Fort.  He’d allowed Jared to continue working on his studies in his very limited spare time and he’d been able to walk the tables to become a Journeyman Harper at Fort Weyr.  He’d never be a Master now, but he had enjoyed Fort Weyr.

“I’m afraid you’ll be stuck with him for a while longer then.  My duties to Ista Weyr and Aloqueth will probably take up too much time to work on my harper training.”

“Jared, this is Weyrleader F’ed and Weyrwoman Amanda, from High Reaches.  And this is S’ling and Ruth from Telgar Weyr.”

Jared nodded his head in greeting, “Thank you for your attendance today.  You honor us.”

“Give Aloqueth our greetings, young rider,” Amanda said though Jared felt no warmth from her words.  F’ed stared at him openly and Jared wondered if his Impression would cause a strain on the relationship between Ista and High Reaches Weyr.

S’ling seemed to stare at him with open curiosity and his weyrwoman, Ruth, smiled with amusement.  He wasn’t sure what to think of that, but he looked back to J’frey and Samantha.  “If you would excuse me, Weyrleaders, Aloqueth is waking and I feel the need to attend to her.”

He waited until he had their approval before he said his good byes to the other weyrleaders and headed past the tables.  Aloqueth was still sleeping but he doubted anyone would fault him for his need to leave. 

He was at the last table when a rider stopped him with a hand to the wall.  Jared had been so focused on walking calmly out of the room that he hadn’t seen the rider move to intercept him.  He looked up at the brown rider who had stopped him. 

He was an older rider, someone Jared had seen around Danneel from time to time.  Danneel never seemed happy in his company but she’d never mentioned him to Jared before either. 

“What did you do, boy?  How did you get a Queen to choose you against her very nature?”

“What?”

“We all know you were allowed to go into the sands alone.  What did you and that Goldrider do to get this to happen?”

Jared might have been worried about the man’s words, but the implication that Danneel would do anything to one of her eggs set his hackles to rise.  “Danneel is a good Weyrwoman who would never do anything to jeopardize the dragons of her weyr.  To say so is preposterious.”

 “You aren’t a weyrwoman.  No man can be.  You aren’t a rider or your name would have changed.  You’re just an imposter.  And I’m going to find out what you did and fix it.”

A body came up behind Jared and as much as he hated the feeling of being boxed in, he didn’t dare turn his back on M’tch.

“Back off, M’tch.  This isn’t the time or place.”

Jared nearly sagged in relief at J’sen’s voice behind him but he stood his ground as he watched M’tch.  The man sneered at him as he looked him over, then walked away.  Jared let out a shuttered breath but when he turned to say thank you to J’sen, the bronze rider was gone. 

He looked back up towards the head table and saw that J’frey had been aware of the intense scene even if he hadn’t  been able to hear the words spoken.  Jared gave him a polite smile before he headed back to the barracks to take comfort in his queen.

 

**

 

The next day went by in a flurry of chores and classes.  When the others got to take a break, Jared was pulled away for meetings with the Weyr leaders.   A Queen was cherished by the Weyr, and her rider was always a leader among their kind.  Jared didn’t fit in as a weyrwoman exactly but he was chosen by his little Queen, and the Weyr Leaders weren’t about to let anyone show any disrespect to an Ista Queen rider.  There had apparently been some grumbling in the Hatching Cavern and more concerns at the feast that Jared had missed.  The Weyr leaders were very supportive of Jared though and he felt lucky, once again, to be at Ista Weyr.    

He was paraded around to every person of interest in the Weyr, and when that was done, he was finally allowed to seek the comfort of the Weyrling Barracks.  He collapsed on top of his blankets and might have fallen asleep if he hadn’t had one last thought.  He hadn’t talked to J’sen.  Not all day long.  They hadn’t exchanged words since before the hatching. 

He tried to close his eyes and sleep but he couldn’t.  Of all the people he had expected to see, J’sen would have been the first. He knew J’sen had duties, but he could have at least given Jared a moment at the feast, once M’tch had walked away.  Jared tried not to let the hurt show, but J’sen was his best friend and he had no idea why the bronzerider hadn’t come to see him.  It had been a busy day but most of the Weyr had made an excuse to see him at some point.  Everyone wanted to pay their respects to the newest Queenrider, especially the wingleaders.  So why was J’sen the exception?

 _Why are you upset, Rider?_ Aloqueth asked.

He sat up straight in his bed and Aloqueth looked up, her eyes slowly swirling yellow in annoyance. 

 _It’s nothing,_ Jared said as he tried to placate her.  It was something they’d been warned about.  Young dragons were emotionally immature.  Too strong an emotional reaction from their rider could cause trouble for the dragonet. 

_No, it’s not nothing.  It’s something.  Why are you upset?_

She butted her head against his knee, and Jared sighed as he reached down and scratched at her eye ridge.  _You’re going to get too big to do that, you know?  You’ll try to knock into my knee and knock me down instead.  But that’s okay, because we’re all we need, right?  You and me?_

 _Always,_ the little Queen answered.  Her eyes started to turn red and Jared could feel her confusion.  _So why are you still upset?_  
  


“Excuse me, Jared?”

Jared looked up from Aloqueth to find T’moh smiling down at him.  It was a welcoming smile and Jared felt himself calmed by the other man’s presence.  Jared wondered if J’mes had trained the man as a Weyrlingmaster Second because of that calming influence, or if his time working with weyrlings had given him that quality.  Jared shook his head at the way his mind tried to shy away from his concerns about J’sen. 

“What can I do for you, Weyrlingmaster T’moh?” Jared asked. He didn’t think he was in trouble.  It wasn’t his fault that he’d been called away from his first day of weyrling training as often as he had been.  Except for the part where it was, because the Weyr leaders wanted to make sure that everyone knew that Jared, even though he was male, had their full support as their newest Queen rider. 

“Tough day?” T’moh asked as he sat in the empty bed across from Jared.

Jared let out a tired laugh.  “I’ve hardly had time to think today until I finally found my bed.”

“And as soon as you did, Aloqueth began to swirl her eyes in alarm.”

“Annoyance I think, not really alarm.”

“She spoke to Halth and asked for help in calming you.”

Jared’s eyes widened.  “Sir, I am so sorry.  It won’t happen again.”

“I hope she does call again, if she needs help.  It’s what we’re here for.  We’re all worried about you Jared.  Not that you won’t make a fine rider, because I’ve rarely seen a Candidate come into these Barracks that had more of an intuitive understanding of the Weyr than you do.  But Aloqueth’s choice has put you in a position we wouldn’t wish on anyone.  You know there have been grumblings about your Impression to our queen.  It will put more pressure on you than any of the others.  Right now you are both vulnerable, and anything that upsets you can be damaging to Aloqueth.”

“How, exactly?” Jared asked.  “I know we’ve heard it before, keeping an even head about us and all that, but how is my emotional reaction something that would hurt her?  I’d never hurt her.”

“No one would willingly hurt their own dragon, Jared.  It isn’t an intentional thing. You know we tell you in Candidate classes that dragonets don’t understand human emotions.  While the bond is still young, they count on their riders to help them navigate those emotions.  When they come across something particularly strong it confuses them and because their rider is compromised, they aren’t as good at calming them down.” 

T’moh closed his eyes in thought and when he opened them, he leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees.  “A while back we had a Candidate come into the Weyr.  He was really smart and funny.  He seemed to take his change in surroundings completely in stride.  He’d never been to a Weyr before, but after a single day here he seemed to know the run of things better than a weyrbrat.  I’ve never seen anyone learn the Ista tunnels quicker,” he said with a grin.

Jared laughed at that because there was no counting the number of times Jared and his friends had been lost in the caverns while they’d been Candidates.  He still wasn’t sure he wouldn’t get lost again.

“The clutch Hatched on his third day as a Candidate.  He was shuffled out onto the Sands with everyone else and he was the first rider picked that day.  He came back, fed his dragonet and oiled him up.  And as soon as he sat down with his dragonet, everything turned to chaos.  He’d had someone special back home.   You see, he never thought he’d actually Impress a dragon and he was suddenly faced with the fact that he was a dragonrider.  He would never go back to the life he’d had before.  To the person he’d left behind.  He got so worked up that his dragon began to panic, also.”

“What happened?”

“His dragon tried to go _between_.”

“But, he couldn’t, right?  They can’t fly this young.”

“A dragonet can’t carry a rider’s weight, but they are born with the instinct to fly.  Who is to say what the dragonet would have done, if the Queen hadn’t been aware of his alarm?  She calmed the dragonet before there was a disaster, but it took quite some time to calm the rider enough to understand what had happened.  We were able to get him to calm down but it was two weeks before the Senior Queen stopped constantly monitoring the pair.  It was a mess.”

“How could you be so upset when you’d just Impressed a dragon?” Jared asked.

“Why are you so upset that Aloqueth called to us?” T’moh turned the question around. 

Jared let out a deep breath and thought about the Candidate T’moh had mentioned instead of his own feelings.  He didn’t want to hurt his dragonet.  “I just … I can’t imagine.  I mean, I love Aloqueth.  I can’t imagine leaving her behind for someone else.”

“Neither could he.  His distress came from knowing he would never see that person again.  That the life he thought they’d have together was gone forever.”

“Surely, he could have talked to the girl and made her understand.  If he loved her so much-”

“I don’t know what he did to come to terms with it in the end, but I want you to understand, Jared.  What you feel affects her very deeply.  And as a Queen, what she feels gets directed at the other dragonets as well.  You above all others will have to keep your emotions in check.”

“Because she’s a Queen.”

“Yes.”

“And more so again because I’m male.”

“Yes.  You will be judged harshly for everything you do because the more hidebound of us will not be able to understand why Aloqueth chose a male rider.  Aloqueth may have made your path more difficult Jared, but do not fear.  She chose well when she chose you.”

Jared gave T’moh a small smile.  “Can I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“J’sen?  Rider of Strith?  We were friends.  I know it’s been a crazy day, but I thought he’d at least stop by and …” he trailed off because he didn’t know how to finish the sentence anymore and he didn’t want to upset Aloqueth.

T’moh smiled.  “There were many riders who stopped to say hello to the new Weyrlings while you were called away with the Weyrleader and the Weyrwoman.  Perhaps J’sen stopped in while you were away and wasn’t able to return later?  I know J’sen, and when he isn’t fighting Thread he’s drilling his Wing harder than any other wingleader I know.”

“Really?”

“He got his position when the previous wingleader was caught by Thread and went between.  There might have been other riders with more experience, but J’sen knew his Wing and he knew how to make them fly.  His first few Falls after his promotion were hard, and every time Thread scored a rider or dragon in his Wing it seemed a personal offense to him.  He learned to handle the job quickly, but he still drills his men like no other.  They hate him for it when they see the others come back candlemarks before they do, but they love him for it when Thread falls and they have the fewest casualties.”   

“Thank you.  I know it isn’t important but it just bothered me.  Aloqueth picked up on that I guess.”

“It will take time for you and Aloqueth to learn how to be together, Jared.  You have a strong bond with her already but that will continue to grow.  Don’t worry.  You won’t always have to be so guarded.  As she grows older, she’ll get used to your emotions.  She’ll hardly acknowledge them and when she does she’ll be better able to understand.  For now, get some sleep.  And let me know if there is anything else you need, Queenrider.”

Jared watched T’moh leave and finally let out a deep breath.  Aloqueth must have decided he was fine because she was asleep now and Jared let himself relax against her warm hide.  He fell asleep instantly.

 

**

 

Jared fell into the routine of weyrling life quickly enough.  His schedule was a little different than the others since he had to learn other things as well.  Samantha and Danneel pulled him aside to talk about things like diplomacy and record keeping.  He sat in with J’frey and learned about Threadfall charts and the importance of the different members of the weyr.

It kept him busy and most nights he didn’t have time to wonder about J’sen.  He saw the rider around the weyr, but it never seemed to be at a time when Jared could speak with him.  On the occasion when Jared tried to follow him after a wingleader meeting, J’frey or Samantha always seemed to need his help or had somewhere else they needed him to be.  He’d think it was a conspiracy if he didn’t know just how busy everyone was.

Running a weyr was no easy feat and with Threadfall it was even harder. 

So Jared continued to wonder about J’sen but he never had the time to do anything about.  Except late at night, when he finally found his sleeping furs, and he thought back to that last encounter.  J’sen never denounced M’tch’s words.  He never said that Jared hadn’t done anything to influence the hatching.  While he had stopped M’tch from making a scene in front of the weyr and the visiting Weyrleaders, he’d never actually defended Jared.

That kept him awake more nights than he wanted to admit. 

 

**

 

Jared stared around the infirmary to see if there was anything out of place.  He was assigned to be with the dragonhealers during Threadfall.  Whether it was because he’d always helped there as a candidate, or because they wanted to keep Aloqueth close to the healers in case anything happened he didn’t know, but Jared was grateful for the familiarity of it.  His first Fall since he’d Impressed Aloqueth was daunting, and in his head he kept thinking that someday soon it would be them in the skies.

That someday wasn’t for more than another Turn but it was their future. 

“Everything looks in order,” Kim, the Master Dragonhealer said to Jared as he caught her eye. 

He nodded.  “If there is anything Aloqueth can help with, she’s ready.”

Kim nodded.  “Just make sure you take care of her if you need to, Jared.  You’ve always been a boon to us during Threadfall, but if it becomes too much, you take care of your dragonet.”

Jared nodded.  “I will.”

Kim nodded but was called away a moment later by one of the journeymen, and Jared decided to run to the back to grab another handful of towels.  They’d need more before it was all done.  He was in the back storeroom when he heard his name called.

“Back here!” he called out.  His arms were full as he turned around to the door and nearly dropped them in surprise.

“J’sen?”

J’sen bowed his head quickly.  “Queenrider,” he said the title with a stiffness that Jared hadn’t seen since they’d first met at the Harper Hall.

“My name is still Jared,” he said shortly.

J’sen stared at him for a moment, and Jared had no idea what to say.

“I just … before Fall starts, I needed … I’m happy for you, Jared.  I know the circumstances are hard, but you’re going to do amazing things for the Weyr and … I’m proud of you.”

“Was that really so hard that it took you three weeks to say?”

Jared wanted the words back as soon as he said them and J’sen flinched.  “Jared, I don’t have an excuse.  I just … take care of her.  She’s beautiful.  You deserve her.”  He looked away and Jared knew it was Strith.  “I have to go.  I’m sorry, I should have come sooner but I need to get to my Wing.”

“Of course.  Be safe, Wingleader.”

“You too, Queenrider.”

J’sen left as abruptly as he’d shown up and Jared wasn’t sure what to think of the exchange. 

 

**

It was bad.  The winds were strong above Ista Hold and Thread fell without pattern or form.  Three riders had been sent to the infirmary with nasty threadburns but as usual, they’d refused to leave the dragon infirmary until their dragons had been cared for.  They were through the majority of fall and they’d managed so far without any deaths.  There were never enough dragons and each and every one was needed during Threadfall. 

“Doing alright, Queenrider?” M’sha asked.  He’d flown one of his wingmates into the weyr.  The wingsail had been hit by a huge clump of Thread.  Aloqueth was already talking to bronze Proth to keep him calm. 

“Find me after Fall and ask, M’sha,” Jared said tersely, “then ask me.  I’m too busy for coddling.”

M’sha laughed and Jared gave him a small smile.  M’sha was allowed a little leeway since his Donath had sired Aloqueth but Jared was really tired of answering that question.

“You heard him, flyboy,” Kim, the Master Dragonhealer said.  “Make way for people who actually need some help.”

It was kindly said, but no one gainsaid Kim in her infirmary.  Or anywhere else for that matter.  “Call us if you need us,” M’sha said, then he was out the front of the cavern to join Donath in the battle with Thread.

Jared noticed M’rk then as Kim pushed him out of her way to get a better look at his Bronze’s injuries. 

“Are you well, Bronzerider?” Jared said as he turned to the rider of Proth. Proth’s rider was older but he had a very reserved bearing.  He’d transferred from High Reaches long before Jared had been searched and while M’rk never spoke ill of his former weyr, it was obvious that he was happy in Ista.

“I’m not hurt.”

Jared gave the rider a skin of water that had some fellis in it.  It wasn’t enough to knock him out, but it would help the nerves if nothing else.  “Aloqueth said Proth is a hero.”

“Proth tipped to the side to keep me from getting hit.  If he hadn’t, that Thread would have been the end of me.”

“Glad to have you both with us still,” Jared said as he grinned at the Bronzerider. 

“Jared, come help me,” Kim called out.

M’rk followed him and they began the delicate work of helping to care for Proth’s wingsail.

It was hard work and made worse by the continued interruptions as needed hands were drawn to other places.  Aloqueth kept a steady dialogue with Proth to keep the dragon still and Jared commended her for her efforts throughout.  She, in turn, complemented his ability to keep working when everyone kept asking him how he was doing.  She could feel his annoyance turn to frustration as everyone continued to check up on them.  Like Jared wasn’t strong enough to help out in the infirmary.  Like Aloqueth wasn’t strong enough to help.  Like he’d fail and lose something as precious as Aloqueth to the stress of Threadfall. 

When Proth was properly slathered with numbweed, sewn up, and bandaged to the best of their ability, she was sent to sleep, with M’rk at her side. 

Jared envied them the ability to sleep but it wasn’t time for them to quit yet.  Kim smiled at him over a bowl of water where they washed their hands together.  “Still up for more?” She asked.

It wasn’t patronizing coming from Kim.  Working with the Dragon healers during Threadfall was exhausting and she’d asked everyone if they needed breaks throughout the Fall.  She always did, even before he’d Impressed.  Not that she’d take one herself. 

Jared smiled his best, tired smile at her.  “As long as they’re still coming, we’re still ready,” he said.

 _Bring ‘em to me,_ Aloqueth agreed.  His Queen might be too little to take to the skies yet, but her hatred of Thread was as fierce as her full grown brethren and she was ready to do whatever she could.

“Aloqueth is ready too.”

“She’s a good girl, Jared,” Kim said with a smile before they heard a racket at the front of the weyr.  “Oh, shard it all.  Let’s see what that was.”

 

**

 

Thread Fall ended and Jared kept working.  He knew the weyrlings who had been helping with the other areas of the weyr would be back in the barracks already but Jared wouldn’t leave, not while he could be of help.  C’lin showed up after Fall had ended to lend a hand as well.  He’d apparently been apprenticed to a healer and could at least apply numbweed properly and was able to run and grab supplies as needed.

Two candlemarks after Fall, the dragon infirmary was finally quiet. 

Jared sat with his back on the wall, too tired to get up just yet.  Kim had handed him a skin of water and he’d slid down, took a few drinks, and not gotten up.   Aloqueth ambled up alongside him and sat with him, her head pillowed on his lap. 

 _I’m too tired to go back to the barracks to sleep,_ she declared.  _She’d let me sleep here._

Jared let out a tired laugh.  _She might let you sleep here, but she’d kick me out.  You going to stay here by yourself?_

He could feel Aloqueth’s pout.  _No.  Everyone would ask questions and you are already too upset about everyone’s questions._

She’d gotten over some of her fussiness about Jared’s reaction to things but his Queen picked up on too much of his irritation with the weyr.  It wasn’t that he thought everyone wanted them to fail, but they were watched constantly.  M’tch wasn’t the only one to imply that Jared had forced Aloqueth to choose him and Jared wasn’t sure he’d ever hear the end of it.  Some people were just too hidebound to allow new ideas and Jared now represented anything new.

He dropped his head back to the wall and closed his eyes.  _You were amazing today.  I know everyone was concerned about how you’d hold up under Fall in the dragon infirmary, but you proved to them that you can handle anything._

_I know._

Jared laughed again but it sounded off even to his own ear. 

One of these days everyone would stop asking how he was doing.  One of these days, everyone would stop watching him so closely.  One of these days, they’ll all stop waiting for him to fail. 

 

**

 

Jared let out a deep breath as he tried to reel in his temper.  He didn’t get angry often but he was frustrated with the way half the weyr was right in his face, ready to see him fail.  And J’sen had sent his wing second, once again, in his place at the Wingleader meeting.  He was still avoiding Jared.    

“Shard it all!” Jared said as he grabbed the Threadfall chart off the table and started to roll it up. 

“That bad a meeting?”

Jared turned sharply and nearly dropped the chart as the Weyrleader walked into the room.  In the month since his Impression of Aloqueth he still hadn’t gotten used to the visits from the Weyrleader or the Weyrwoman. 

“J’frey,” he tripped over his own tongue to say the name, but he’d been admonished enough times to stop saying Weyrleader every time they spoke.  “No, it wasn’t a bad meeting, really.”

“Which one?”

“What?”

“Which wingleader bothered you?”

“No one,” Jared answered.  “No one said anything or did anything inappropriate.”

“But-“

“But even though I’m just here to observe the meetings and learn from them, I feel like everyone is waiting for me to do something wrong.  To prove that I’m not supposed to be here.”

“Jared, you know that Samantha and I believe in you.”

“Thank you,” Jared said with a deep breath.  It was true, and he knew it.  Samantha and J’frey had spent more than enough time with Jared to convince him that they saw his worth to the Weyr.  Danneel had been there every step of the way too.  It was the rest of the Weyr that judged him.  It was a certain Wingleader who kept finding legitimate reasons to send his Wing Second to meetings instead of being in the same room with Jared for more than perfunctory congratulations and a hasty retreat.

“I was already aware of how lucky I was to come to Ista Weyr before I Impressed Aloqueth.  The support you and Samantha have given me has been incredible.  I’m not sure I’d have survived this long without it.”

“Nonsense.  Ista Queens don’t choose weak riders,” J’frey said with a smile.  “Which is part of what I wanted to speak with you about, actually.”

“So this wasn’t a social call.”

“Did I need to say that?”

Jared laughed.  “No.  I’ve learned well enough that the Weyrleader and Weyrwoman are too busy for social visits very often.  Especially during a Pass.”

J’frey nodded.  “Have you heard the latest rumors?”

Jared sighed.  “You mean the one circulating the Lower Caverns that says the only reason Aloqueth chose me was because Dani convinced Fantith to force her to?”

“That would be the one.”

“I’ve tried to ignore it.”

“You should.”

“Really?  I’m not so sure.”

“Jared-”

“You remember how Fantith kicked the other candidates out of the cavern the first time I visited?  How she made me visit with Aloqueth’s egg before she’d hatched?”

“Jared, no one can make a dragon choose someone.  We don’t know how a dragon chooses, but if exposure were the only thing that mattered every Candidate would Impress at some point.  This isn’t the first time a dragonet has turned a nose up at the offered Candidates and gone outside of the offerings.  Bluerider S’bast was a Lower Cavern boy on an errand who got tackled by a dragonet when he dashed into the Hatching Cavern to deliver a message.  Dragons know who their rider is and no one can change that.  No matter how much people want to cast aspersions on the relationship you had with our junior weyrwoman.  Or Wingleader J’sen.”

Jared had purposely left out J’sen when he mentioned the rumors.  J’frey wasn’t an idiot, though, even if he was kind enough to be discrete.  “Sorry.  I know that.  I just can’t help but worry and then…”

“The Wingleader.”

“Yeah,” Jared said with a sigh. 

“Is J’sen becoming an issue?”

“No.  _When_ I see him he treats me with complete respect.  He just never seems to come to meetings if he knows I’m here.  We used to be friends so it’s been a difficult transition.  He has never treated me with disrespect though.”

J’frey sighed.  “Jared, I’m going to be really clear on this.  If anyone gives you grief, I want you to tell me.  You might want to turn a blind eye to it, but I will not have a member of our Weyr leadership treated poorly.  A slight to you is the same as one to myself or Samantha or Danneel.  I know J’mes and T’moh will make certain you are treated fairly under their eyes, but you have other duties that call you away as a Weyr … Queen rider.”

“You’re going to slip up one of these days and say it,” Jared teased.

“We’re going to have to find something to call you since Weyrwoman doesn’t fit.  What is it T’moh calls you?  Queenrider?”

“He does.”

“I like it.  It describes you well enough.  Now, if you’ll excuse me, Queenrider, I have a Weyrwoman to reassure about your well-being, and you have some records to clean up.” 

“Thank you, Weyrleader.”

J’frey left and Jared felt his spirits rise.  It didn’t make the other’s reactions to him any better, or the sting of J’sen’s avoidance any less, but he had J’frey’s support.  There wasn’t much the Weyrleader wasn’t capable of and he was firmly on Jared’s side.

Even if Jared had to wear down the hide-bound members of the Weyr, at least he had J’frey, Samantha, and Danneel on his side.  

 

**

Jared squinted as he stared up at the sky to see the Weyr leaders come out of between.  They were back from their meeting at Igen Weyr and Aloqueth hadn’t sensed any alarm at their return.  Instead, the Queen continued to glide across the waters of the bathing pool.  In a few months she’d be strong enough to fly her way down to the ocean shallows.  Until then, Jared was just glad the pools were close by.    

Jared sat at the edge of the pool lake and watched Aloqueth as she sunned herself.  The pool was more like a large pond than a bathing pool.  Aloqueth was one of three dragons using it but Jared had plenty of space to keep to himself. 

It was his first free day since he’d Impressed his dragonet.  His first task of the day had been to bathe and oil her.  His morning was half over already but she was well cared for, and Jared planned to relax right where he was until his stomach forced him into the kitchen.  If it happened after lunch, Jared wasn’t worried.  The Headwoman, Julie, was kind and Jared knew she’d let him steal a tray of whatever was available when he showed up. 

 _You are happy today,_ Aloqueth said lazily.

_Guess I am.  It’s nice to relax for a change.  I might just stay right here all day and do nothing at all._

He got a mental snort from Aloqueth in response. 

_What?  I could use the relaxation._

_Yes, which means you won’t do it for long._

_You’ve gotten cynical at the ripe old age of three months._

_You’re already thinking about the hides you saw in the store rooms._

Jared laughed because he couldn’t deny it.  As much as he enjoyed the time off, he’d had a project in mind since he’d seen a handful of the Weyr’s records.  Ista had good records, but some of the oldest hides were beginning to fade and crack beyond use.  Jared had a fair hand from his days at the Harper Hall, and he wanted to convince Dani to help him as well.  He knew she’d see the need to store them well, and she had a beautiful hand. 

 _Maybe later,_ Jared confessed.  _I was thinking about a swim, actually._

_That would be good.  There are many riders around the Weyr that would appreciate that._

_Aloqueth!_

_What?  You didn’t want to know that?_

_No!_

_I am just telling you what I hear from the dragons._

_Well… stop._

He heard a laugh and looked up to find Danneel smiling at him.  He felt his cheeks flush, but Dani just smiled brighter.  “So, Aloqueth is trying to get you to turn red, be it sunburn or embarrassment today,” she teased.

Jared shook his head.  “Apparently.”

“She should.  You need some time to relax and enjoy yourself.  We don’t get that often enough, as weyrlings or as part of the Weyr leadership.”

“And what are you doing out and about today?”

“Saw you two stretched out here, and I wanted to check in on my favorite weyrlings.  Don’t tell anyone I said that though.  There are enough rumors about us to begin with,” she said with a smile. 

“Free day for you, too?”

“I have some duties to attend to later, but I have a free morning.  How are you and Aloqueth fairing?”

“I know the healers and dragonhealers report to the Weyr Leaders about us constantly, as well as J’mes and T’moh.”

“I wasn’t asking about that.  I meant, how are you _doing_? I’m your friend, Jared, not just a fellow queen rider.  You looked out for me when I was a lowly drudge.  Don’t think I’m not going to keep an eye on you now.”

He smiled then, because it was Dani and she was right.  They’d always looked after one another, and of all the things he was grateful about once he Impressed Aloqueth, being able to spend more time with Dani was certainly one of them.

“I’m well.  Happy, as Aloqueth informed me this morning.  Some of the rumors over my Impression seem to have died down here, and the routine is settled in enough that I’m not dead tired every night.”

“Might need to talk to J’mes if he’s getting soft…”

“Don’t you dare!” Jared laughed.  “I’m still plenty tired.  And I was told we’d be starting firestone drills tomorrow.” Firestone was necessary to the dragons to fight thread.  They chewed it up and it allowed them to breathe fire.  The drills were necessary to the weyrlings to build up the strength they’d need to handle firestone during thread to keep their dragons properly stoked.  The bags were heavy though and Jared had no doubt he’d be exhausted and sore after the first day.  “I think it’s the only reason he gave us a freeday today.  Lure us in with a false sense of security.” 

Dani laughed at that.   Jared lay back on his elbows on the sandy beach edge of the pool as he watched her.  She let out a deep breath, and her smile faded.

“What did you actually come to talk to me about?”

“I can’t just come check on you?”

“You can.  And you do.  But I can see there’s something you need to talk about.  If it was something personal, you’d have started off with it.  Which means you wanted to check on me as a friend before you talked to me about Weyr business.”

“I hate that you know me so well,” Dani muttered.   

“So, what new rumor has cropped up that they think you need to talk to me about?” Jared asked.  Normally J’frey or Samantha would come to him themselves if they thought there was an issue, but they weren’t above using his friendship with Danneel if they felt it was something a little too personal. 

Dani sighed.  “We received a request from Igen Weyr.”

“Samantha and J’frey have been back and forth a few times this sevenday.  We have a strong relationship with them.  It’s good to see they can come to us in need,” Jared said when she paused.

“They’ve had discipline issues with one of their wingleaders.  They’ve asked us to send someone over who can replace their current wingleader and get his Wing in shape for Threadfall as quickly as possible.”

“Why not replace him with one of their own?”

“They’re making an example of him.  The Weyrleader is slightly hidebound but more flexible than most of his Weyr.  He wants new blood to make them see that the old ways aren’t always the best ways.”

“I suppose that makes sense.  Have they thought about who they’ll ask to go?”

“It’s already been decided.  J’sen.”

“He asked to move to Igen?” Jared asked.  He was too shocked to say anything else.  Their few meetings had been rough, but he never thought J’sen would actually ask to leave the Weyr because of him.  He knew how J’sen felt about the Weyr, about his Wing.   

“He’s being transferred, Jared.  He wasn’t asked.  We felt he was the best candidate for the position.”

“What?  You agreed to it?”

Danneel nodded.  “He’s young and strong and proud, Jared.  He’s a hard worker, and he’ll be able to get his new Wing up to speed before their next Fall.  They need someone like him.”

“You’re sending him away because of me.”

“No,” Dani said as she looked at Jared.  There was anger in her eyes and a hint of tears as well, but Jared ignored it.  He felt betrayed and lost at the thought of losing J’sen once again, even if his former friend barely acknowledged him.  “I’m doing it for him.  It’s my duty to do what is best for the Weyr and all its Riders.”

She got up and left before Jared could think of anything else to say.

_Fantith says her rider is very upset about the transfer.  She is still very close to Strith’s rider.  She is concerned about him though and thought he would be better off to spend some time away from the weyr._

Jared let out a deep breath as he listened to Aloqueth.  He hadn’t meant to accuse Dani of anything but his strained relationship with J’sen had been eating away at him.  What little he said to Jared was always polite but there were too many times J’sen had walked away from snide comments or rumors without saying a word in Jared’s defense.  Just because he was polite to the goldrider didn’t mean he supported Jared.  It hurt because of all the people in the weyr he’d expected the support from, J’sen was on the top of his list.  

_Aloqueth, ask Fantith when Strith’s rider is leaving._

A moment later his dragon butted her head against Jared’s side, and he wrapped his arms around her neck. 

_They are already gone._


	5. Timestamp - Igen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Strith huffed out his annoyance but J’sen could feel his acceptance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written for the December Drabble Days

J'sen looked down over the ridge of the weyr and said good-bye to Ista.  
  
 _We could have stayed,_ Strith said.  _We didn’t have to go._  
  
J'sen let out a long sigh.  _I do have to.   I can’t make him go through what we did._  
  
 _He’s not you._  
  
 _No, but I’m still me.  I tried to keep my distance but before you, Jared was all I had.  And now? He needs to focus on his queen.  I’m not sure I can let him._  
  
Strith huffed out his annoyance but J’sen could feel his acceptance.  _Then let us be gone to Igen._


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aloqueth's first flight and a meeting of the WeyrLeaders.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am still alive and writing! Not as long an update as I planned to write, but i'm hoping to get another one out soon.

 

If Jared went into a bout of moodiness after that day, no one noticed.  What they did see was Jared’s ever steady presence, his persistence, and his ability to calm others just by being there.  His words were a boon to the injured in Threadfall and Aloqueth was becoming an expert in how to calm other dragons as well. 

He spent his spare time on a project of his own, one that Jr. Weyrwoman Dannielle took to as well.  They had made a fair dent in the hides that were about to be lost to time.   They were often caught up late into the night, a glow basket between them in Dannielle’s outer chambers as they copied them onto new skins, preserving the history and knowledge of those who had gone before. 

If Jared noticed the Weyrleaders frowning at his lack of personal time, he ignored it.  Just as he ignored the pain he felt every time M’rk came to a Wingleader meeting.  Not that J’sen had ever come to them if he could send someone else in his place, but it was the fact that M’rk had replaced him that rankled.  Still, he had a good relationship with the bronzerider, ever since he’d helped Proth after a nasty hit during Fall and the older rider was a strong, steady head when things got heated in meetings.  Or when people pushed Jared too far.

That’s why it was a comfort to see the Wingleader across the bowl as Jared sat nervously atop Aloqueth, staring down across the bowl for the first time. 

Aloqueth had been making flights on her own for some time now, but as with the other Weyrlings in her class, they had finally been deemed physically strong enough to bear a rider on their backs.  Aloqueth had been saying she was ready for some time, and though Jared thought she was probably right, he knew that they needed to wait for the rest of their friends to mature.  If he and Aloqueth pushed to attempt a flight before the others, someone was bound to try it on their own. 

_Are you ready, love?_ Jared asked the Queen. 

She gave a little huff.  _The entire weyr is watching.  I’d better be._

Jared patted her shoulder, then adjusted his riding straps one more time.  _They can’t help but come to admire your beauty._

_I am beautiful ,_ the Gold said.  _They all say so.  Even the dragons from other weyrs._

Jared gave a snort at that.  There was more than one foreign dragon on their island today.  Jared would like to say that it was a coincidence that they’d shown, but he didn’t have that kind of confidence in coincidence.  It must have gotten out somehow. 

_Let’s give them a good show then, shall we?_

He saluted to the WeyrlingMaster and his 2nd to let them know he was ready and got their response in return.  If anything looked like it was going wrong, J’mes and T’moh would be there to help them.   

Jared let out a deep breath as he felt Aloqueth’s muscles tense under him.  Then she jumped from the ledge and they were in the air.  It was supposed to be a short jump down to the weyr floor, but Aloqueth snapped her wings open and took a leisurely glide around the weyr bowl.  It was a perfectly executed circle and she landed right where she was supposed to.

Jared should have had words with her, but as soon as they were in the open air he’d been caught in the sensation of flying.  The air against his face, the feel of his own dragon underneath him, the thrill of being able to go anywhere they wanted.  They hadn’t learned how to go between just yet, but the whole of Pern was theirs when they did. 

When he landed he let out a hoot of laughter and smiled as he pulled the goggles from his face.  It wasn’t a long enough flight to demand them, but J’mes said they needed to get used to them from the get go.  J’mes smiled widely at Jared and T’moh came up beside him and clapped him on his shoulder.

“Nice landing, Jared.  Pass on my compliments to Aloqueth,” the WeyrlingMaster 2nd said.

“Sorry about the extra flight time, J’mes.  Aloqueth didn’t give me any warning.”

J’mes nodded but he was smiling instead of frowning.  “Considering the audience, I didn’t think she would do any less.  That Queen of yours feels the need to prove something, sorta like her rider.”

Jared reached across the bond to Aloqueth and looked up when he realized she wasn’t paying any attention to him.  _Aloqueth?_

_There was a bronze on the ridge.  He got here right before we took off.  He just left._

_Was he bothering you?_

_Congratulating me._

_Why are you bothered then,_ Jared asked.

_Just curious why he and his rider don’t stay for the evening meal.  They never do, though I always ask when I see them._

It was news to Jared and sounded far too much like someone from another weyr was checking up on them when he hadn’t noticed.  _Who is it?  What weyr?_

_Igen.  But Strith never stays._

_J’sen was here?_

_J’sen is always here when the others come._

Jared frowned at the news.  J’sen couldn’t have bothered to check up on him when he was in the same weyr, but now he was reporting to Igen about his performance?  He shook his head of the black mood it put him in but Aloqueth was poking him with her nose, nearly knocking him down.

_The others are excited about their first flight.  Are you not?_

_I am, Aloqueth.  You_ _were amazing!_

He let the Queen talk him away from his mood and he followed his fellow weyrlings into the weyr to celebrate, forgetting for a moment, his feelings of betrayal and hurt.

 

**

 

“Things are going to get tough,” the Weyrleader of High Reaches said to the table.  Jared was ready for this meeting to end.  He was there as a witness, nothing more.  He was in good company though.  The Weyrleaders of all six weyrs didn’t meet often so there were Junior Weyrwomen from each weyr present.  Dannielle wasn’t beside him, but she was across the room, speaking softly from time to time with Igen’s Junior, Kathryn.  He’d tried to ingratiate himself to the other Juniors as well, but he’d found a hard time speaking to the riders of High Reaches and Telgar.  He’d given it up when Kathryn had barely been able to look him in the eye.  It didn’t say much about what the Igen leadership thought of his role as a Queenrider. 

“The holds won’t be able to keep the tithes if the pass continues as hard as it’s been,” F’ed continued.  Jared disliked the man and the warning M’rk had given him didn’t help any.  M’rk had asked to transfer from the weyr because of the man’s hidebound ways.  Jared appreciated the silent support M’rk had always given him and he had taken the warning to heart.  F’ed and his Weyrwoman, Amanda, had no love for Jared and the way he’d upset things at Ista Weyr. 

“Things always get tight during a Pass,” J’lian was quick to answer.  The Benden Weyrleader was the oldest among them, but he was surprisingly young at heart.  It had surprised everyone when his bronze continued to catch his Weyrwoman Lindsey’s Queen, but no one in Benden seemed surprised that the man was able to keep up with his Weyrwoman.  A fond look passed between them as she entwined their fingers together.  “If it was easy, the planet wouldn’t need us.  The weyrs will make do with the tithes that are sent and the Holds will do their best to keep us strong.  It is a cycle that was long set up and has sustained us for all the Passes and Intervals between.  Or do you doubt your own ability to keep up, F’ed?”

There was no love between Benden and High Reaches, though Jared knew from his time in the Harper Hall that there used to be much stronger ties there.

“Who’s to say what will happen in a Pass when men ride Queens?” S’ling from Telgar intervened.  The dark skinned Weyrleader wasn’t a fan of Jared’s.  His weyrwoman Ruth seemed to go between doting mother and bane of his existence each time Jared saw her. 

“I haven’t noticed Ista having any problems with Fall, or their tithing,” T’mothy of Fort said quickly.  There was no doubt that T’mothy approved of Jared.  In fact, he had come to Ista himself after hearing about Jared’s impression and laughed himself to tears when he made Jared recount the story.  His Weyrwoman, Genevieve had shaken her head at the antics of her Weyrmate and smiled at Jared, telling him they’d always known he’d do great things somewhere.  And cause trouble while doing so.

“A weyr will never falter, so long as it has a strong Queenrider to guide it,” Genevieve said as she smiled.  She looked at Samantha, Dannielle, and finally Jared.  “Ista has three.  I doubt you will hear them complain about a lack of leadership any time soon.”

“A truth we can hope holds true in all our Weyrs and Holds over this Pass,” J’frey stepped up as usual to keep the peace between the others.  Jared wished he’d held his tongue a little longer, as it looked like S’ven of Igen was about to say something.  Jared didn’t have any dealing with the other Weyrleader.  He had dark skin and a deep voice, no nonsense when he did speak at meetings.  His Weyrwoman Briana was almost his complete opposite with a warm smile for all who looked.  Jared didn’t know what the pair thought of him and Aloqueth.  They had never, in the few times he’d seen them, offered their support or condemned him.  It bothered him that he didn’t know his place with Igen Weyr. 

“Be that as you may,” Amanda began.  “The Weyrleader of High Reaches isn’t wrong.  The Weyrs are going to suffer if something isn’t done about tithing this Pass.  We can’t continue to fight thread, especially in these horrid conditions, without increased supplies.”

None of the weyrs were having an easy Pass.  High temperatures made sure that less thread froze in the skies above them and more fell.  Less rain fall had stinted some of the crops which left tithes light.  It all left tempers high.

“Too bad we don’t still have the South,” Jared said into the silence. 

He hadn’t meant to say it aloud, but he looked at Dannielle and she nodded in agreement.

“What about the South?” Benden’s Weyrwoman asked.

Jared realized he’d said it aloud then and looked at Samantha for guidance.  She smiled and nodded her head for him to continue.  “I’m sorry.  Jr. Weyrwoman Dannielle and myself were copying old records to keep them from being lost and there were mentions of the Southern Continent.  It was a half written song in one of our oldest ledgers.  It spoke of supplies from the Southern Continent.”

“No one has been to the South in…  “ S’ven trailed off because no one in their right minds travelled to a land with no weyr for protection.

“I didn’t mean to interrupt.  I’m sorry,” Jared added hastily.  “It was a fancy.  If the South had ever sent supplies to the weyrs I’m sure there would be other records.  The Harper of the record had a fondness for collecting local superstitions and songs made to pass them along.  It was surely just a legend.”

“If we’re done telling fairytales, perhaps we can get back to business,” S’ling said.

Jared sighed as he tried to step back even further into the wall.  When he looked up, Briana of Igen was watching him closely.  When S’ven whispered into her ear, her smile grew wider but her eyes never left Jared.


End file.
